Chapter Seven:

Let's Talk About Annie

In what little time had passed since Annie's arrival on the Warner's door step, she had not only taken her first steps, but said her first words as well. Within that same time, she had become a welcomed favorite around the studio. Even managing to win over Mr. Plotz, which was really saying something.

He had nearly fainted when he first heard the news of there being a fourth Warner, but soon realized that the Warner's new addition was keeping them too busy to cause as much trouble. And it was around that point that he learned to appreciate Annie's presence.

Among the three Warner siblings, it was Dot who spent the most time of all with Annie. To everyone's surprise, including hers, she had taken on the role of primary caregiver. Yakko and Wakko still helped out of course, and were a big part of Annie's life.

Wakko's time with Annie was mostly play time. He loved to teach her all sorts of games and show off his vast collection of strange items.

Much of Yakko's time with Annie was spent teaching her to use various words and phrases. She soaked up everything he showed her like a little sponge, and never seemed to forget.

Within just four months, she sounded more like a four year old than a four month old. Her motor skills had developed to match.

At six moths old, Annie possessed an even more impressive vocabulary for her age, and was just getting started on reading lessons.

She had become such a cute little bundle of energy at that point. Always roaming about the tower in search of some new game or activity. She was quite the little acrobat as well.

"Look Mommy! I can stand on my head, see!" Annie said.

"Bravo Annie!" Dot applauded. "She is so cute." She whispered to Yakko.

"Cuter than you?" Yakko asked.

"Do not go there Yakko, the waters are very dangerous." Dot warned. Then she checked her watch. "Ok Annie, bed time. Go pick out which book you want me to read you tonight." She said.

"Ok Mommy." Annie said. Then she rushed up to the room that she and Dot shared and opened the chest full of books and things at the foot of Dot's bed. She happened upon a book with no pictures in it, and was instantly fascinated by it. She had never seen a book like that before.

"What kind of book is this Mommy?" Annie asked as Dot entered the room.

"That? That's a chapter book." Dot said.

"Why is it called that?" Annie asked.

"It's called a chapter book because the story is split up into sections called chapters. You want me to read it to you tonight?" Dot asked.

"Uh-huh." Annie said as she shook her head yes.

"Ok. But let's get you dressed for bed first." Dot said. Then she helped Annie into her pajamas, and the reading began.

Annie listened intently, wanting to hear chapter after chapter. Dot eventually had to cut it short unfortunately. It was getting late, and they did have an appointment in the morning.

"Please Mommy, one more chapter." Annie pleaded as she stood in the crib with her hands on the bars.

"But I just read you one more chapter. Twice! It's bed time now." Dot said.

"But this is the best story I've ever heard! Can't we please read just a little bit more?" Annie asked.

"We've already been up an hour longer than we should've been Annie. We'll miss the interview tomorrow if we stay up any longer. And you begged me to let you come along in the first place! So I want you to lay down, close those little eyes, and go to sleep. I'm serious." Dot said, finishing with a more firm tone.

"Can we do one more page at least?" Annie asked.

"The book will still be here tomorrow Annie, and I promise that I'll read it to you then. But right now, it's bed time. End of story." Dot said.

"Ok..." Annie relented disappointedly. "Can I hold the book for tonight at least?" She asked hopefully. Dot thought about it for a second.

"Yes you may." Dot said as she handed Annie the book.

"Thanks Mommy." Annie said, sounding more enthusiastic than Dot had expected.

"You're welcome Annie." Dot said as she pet Annie's head. "Now lay down and go to sleep like I told you." She added gently.

"Yes Mommy." Annie said as she complied. Meanwhile, Dot climbed into her own bed.

"Goodnight." Dot said before shutting off the lamp next to the bed.

"Goodnight Mommy." Annie said. Then she quietly drifted off to sleep, holding her new favorite book just like a stuffed animal. The following morning, she took it with her when they went to do the interview.

"We're here to shoot a promotional interview with Tyron Garble." Dot said to the receptionist when they first arrived.

"Take the door to your left, make a right, then keep going till you reach the door at the end of the hallway." The receptionist said. Dot and Annie followed her directions and took the door she pointed to.

"Now remember Annie, the same rules that apply on the movie set, apply here too." Dot said as they walked down the empty hallway. "No calling me mommy, no referring to Yakko and Wakko as uncle Yakko and Wakko. And you always call your daddy, Mr. Bunny." She said.

"Why do I always have to talk different whenever we go somewhere?" Annie asked. Dot stopped and gently turned Annie to face her as she kneeled to be closer to Annie's eye level.

"We've been though this before Annie." Dot said. "If someone were to find out that I'm your mommy, and that Mr. Bunny is your daddy. They might think that certain laws were broken. Then things would just be a big mess all around."

"But why would somebody think some kind of law was broken if they heard me call you mommy? What kind of law is that?" Annie asked.

"Annie, I realize there are things you wanna know. But I'm just not ready to talk about them right now. Can you please just trust me till I am?" Dot asked pleadingly.

"Ok..." Annie said reluctantly.

"Thanks Annie." Dot said as she hugged her. "Now lets hurry before we're late for that interview." She added in a more cheerful tone. Then they started down the hall once again.

"Can we get some ice cream after this?" Annie asked as they walked.

"Sure. We can get some from that cart we saw in the park on the way here." Dot replied. A few minutes later, they were on the set of Dig Tickets, being interviewed by Tyron Garble.

"Evening folks. I'm Tyron Garble, here with Dot Warner, and her young costar, Annie Warner. Both here promoting their new film in the works. Titled, Hide and seek." Tyron said. "So what can you tell us about this project miss Warner?" He asked as he turned his attention to his guests.

"Well, it's all about this little orphan girl who happens to witness a crime, and she's supposed to be going into a witness protection program along with her baby sister. Unfortunately, the people who come to pick them up turn out to be impostors sent to silence her. She somehow manages to escape with her sister just in time, then the adventure really gets started." Dot said.

"Sounds interesting." Tyron said. "So tell us, what's it feel like to be playing the first serious role of your career?" He asked.

"It's different in a lot of ways really. Mostly cause I've never worked without my brothers before. Also it's my first time working with Annie here." Dot said.

"Could you tell us a bit about Annie?" Tyron asked.

"I could. But I think she'd rather do it herself." Dot said.

"She can talk already? How much?" Tyron asked.

"Ask her a question and find out." Dot replied.

"Ok. Tell us a bit about yourself Annie." Tyron said as he held out a microphone handed to him by a stagehand.

"What should I say?" Annie whispered away from the microphone as she looked to her Mommy. Dot leaned in closer and started to whisper in her ear.

"I'm six moths old... My full name is Angelina Carolina Debbie Rosemary Beth Warner... My favorite color is blue... I like playing hide and seek... And I really like books." Annie said, mirroring the words that Dot whispered.

"And I see you brought one with you today." Tyron said.

"Yup, this is my favorite book ever, and I'm keeping it with me from now on!" Annie said on her own.

"Your favorite book, huh? Don't tell me you're already reading too." Tyron said.

"No, but I'm learning. And my mommy reads to me every night." Annie said.

"Your mommy sounds like a nice lady. Can you tell us a bit about her?" Tyron asked.

"Well, she's taller than me." Annie said.

"I guess she would have to be." Tyron said. "But could you tell us a bit, more about her?" He asked.

"Why do you keep saying us? Is somebody hiding behind your chair or something?" Annie asked.

"No. When I say us, I'm referring to me and the people watching on TV." Tyron said as he gestured towards the camera.

"Oh…" Annie said. "Hi people watching on the TV!" She said as she turned and waved to the camera.

"Right..." Tyron said. "Let's go ahead and show that movie clip you two brought before we run out of time for it, ok. Roll it Jimmy." He said. Then the screen behind them lit up and started to play the movie clip.

The clip opened with a shot of Dot and Annie huddled up behind something at a construction site.

"I wish I had never seen what I saw. Then the two of us wouldn't be in danger like this." Dot's character said. "But don't worry Annie. You won't lose me the way we lost mom and dad. And I'm not gonna lose you either. I'll never let that happen." She said.

"And that was, Hide and seek. In theaters this fall. Next up, I'll be speaking with Mell Gibson about his new film, Return." Tyron said as the cheesy commercial break music started to play.

"Can we get that ice cream now?" Annie asked abruptly. Roughly ten minutes later, they were in the park eating ice cream.

Annie played quietly in the sandbox while eating her ice cream with the other hand. Dot looked on contentedly from a nearby park bench.

It was a nice day out, and it felt good to be doing something spontaneous after having spent the past months only leaving the tower for appointments.

After the ice cream was gone, Annie wanted to go on the swing. Dot gladly pushed her.

"Can we come back here again sometime Mommy?" Annie asked as Dot pushed her on the swing.

"Sure Annie. We can come here as many times as you like. And you know what? I'm gonna start taking you out to a lot more places too." Dot said.

"Really?" Annie asked.

"Really." Dot replied. "We'll go to the zoo, and all kinds of places." She said.

"Can we go on that slide over there right now?" Annie asked.

"Well sure we can." Dot said. "But let's make it just a bit more interesting first." She added. Then she put on a hard hat and tool belt, and quickly went to work on the slide.

"Um, are we allowed to do that to the slide Mommy?" Annie asked as she watched Dot make some less than slight alterations to the slide.

"Sure we are. It's public property, right? And we're the public, aren't we?" Dot said as she climbed down the enormous slide she had built where the other one once stood.

"Uh, I guess so..." Annie said, sounding slightly confused. "Can we go on the slide now?" She asked, quickly switching to a more upbeat tone.

"Yup. Just hop up on my back, and it's up we go!" Dot said.

"Ok." Annie said. Then she climbed up on Dot's back.

They started up the ladder and climbed till they reached the top. Dot placed Annie in her lap and prepared to launch them down the slide.

"You ready Annie?" Dot asked.

"Ready Mommy!" Annie replied.

"Then let's go." Dot said. And with that, she pushed off.

They quickly gained speed as they barreled down the gigantic slide. They passed through loops, twist, turns, one after another. It was like riding a roller coaster without the seats! A roller coaster that somehow seemed to stretch clear across the city!

"Having fun Annie?" Dot shouted over the sound of wind in their ears.

"How are we gonna stop when we get to the end of this thing Mommy?" Annie asked, growing wary of the speed.

"It'll be a while before that happens. We can think of something when we get there." Dot said casually. Annie's eyes widened with horror.

"Could we think of something right now Mommy?" Annie asked nervously.

"Not to worry Annie, I was Just kidding before." Dot said reassuringly. "So could you please let go of Mommy's legs so she can feel her toes again?" She added in a slightly pained tone.

Minutes later, the ride was over. And Dot and Annie were back on the ground.

"How did we get off that slide so fast Mommy? It stretched all the way across the city, didn't it?" Annie asked. "And why are we back in the park? Shouldn't we be somewhere else if we really reached the other end? And how did you build something like that in the first place? Shouldn't it take more than just a few seconds to do something like that? And more importantly, why is it gone now?" She asked, gesturing towards the original slide that had somehow reappeared in it's place.

"It seems you're in desperate need of a lesson on toon physics Annie." Dot said. "To put it simply, the slide is gone because we're done with it. Props don't stick around very long if you're not gonna to use them again. As for where they go when we're done with them, not even I'm too sure about that one." She added.

"But how can something just disappear like that? It doesn't make any sense." Annie said.

"Things don't really have to make much sense in a cartoon Annie. Like the way your uncle Wakko can eat over three thousand pounds of food in one sitting, and still not gain even an ounce of weight. Cartoon characters can bend all kinds of rules like that!" Dot said.

"As a cartoon character, you can hide in places much smaller than your body. Then pop out and scare people!" Dot continued. "You can even pop up in places you weren't even hiding to begin with. Especially if someone is chasing you, or trying to get away from you."

"For example, if someone were to get mad and try to smash you. You would just pop up somewhere else like nothing had happened. The trick there, is that you have to know it's coming, and that it can't be an accident. If someone or something hits you accidentally, you'll get hurt for real." Dot said.

"Look out!" Someone shouted as if on cue.

Annie turned and saw a ball headed directly for her face. She put her arms up just in time to avoid getting a broken nose.

The impact took her off her feet, and would've been enough to leave a mark had she not been covered with fur. But she was otherwise fine.

"Annie!" Dot cried, rushing to Annie and kneeling at her side. "Are you ok?" She asked in a voice filled with concern.

"Won't you tell us that you're ok?" The young squirrel boy who kicked the ball asked as he rushed over, looking and sounding very concerned. We all know him as Skippy by the way.

"I'm ok" Annie said. "Can I have some more ice cream?" She suddenly asked.

"Sure Annie, as much as you want." Dot said as she hugged her.

"I'll get it." Skippy volunteered. Then he rushed off and returned with the ice cream a few moments later.

"Here ya go." He said as he handed her the ice cream.

"Thank you!" Annie said happily. Then she started in on the ice cream cone.

"You're welcome." Skippy said. "And I'm really sorry about the soccer ball by the way." He added. Annie paused and looked up at him briefly, then went back to eating her ice cream without saying a word.

"It's ok." Dot said. "Judging from the way she's eating that ice cream, I'd say that you and I are the only ones who're upset about all this."

"Well, that's good to hear." Skippy said, sounding a bit relieved. "Anyway, I'd better be going now. It was nice seeing you again by the way." He said to Dot. "And nice meeting you." He said to Annie. "Bye now." He added with a wave as he made his exit.

"Who was that just now Mommy?" Annie asked.

"That was Skippy. We used to work on the same show together." Dot replied. Annie looked off in the direction Skippy had just walked off in.

"Skippy." Annie said to herself.

Later that day, back at the water tower, Dot and Annie were watching TV with Yakko and Wakko. The interview they had done earlier that day was on. Annie was sitting in Dot's lap, eating ice cream as they watched. Elsewhere, Skippy happened to be watching the same program.

"Six months old? I thought she was just small for her age!" Skippy said to himself as he looked on in disbelief. He had realized Annie was younger than himself the moment he first saw her. But with the way she spoke, he had naturally assumed she was at least older than that.

After the interview was over, he shut off the TV and simply stood there scratching his head. Back at the water tower, the Warners were giving their reactions to the interview as well.

"That went pretty well I'd say. Not bad for your first interview Annie." Yakko said. Dot cleared her throat. "And your mommy did pretty good too." He added.

"Naturally, I am an expert after all. Right Annie?" Dot asked.

"Right Mommy!" Annie said. Then she finished the last bit of the ice cream in her bowl. "Can I have some more ice cream please?" She asked.